Concept Testing

Concept testing

• Purpose of concept testing

Concept testing is to examine experience of using handbag of consumers in order to design an effective and practical product to suit their behaviour and encourage consumer to purchase product. Method of testing is to conduct a survey. The survey will gather information of consumer about what they are currently using bag behaviour, what they are expecting on new bag before seeing the prototype and finally their suggestion to improve our product.

• Choice of survey population

According to Ulrich (2013), survey population has been determined after take in consideration these factors:

• The product concept is at early development process. At this stage, the development team has just developed a definitions, a simple product ideas.
• This test is to gather qualitative data about new product from consumers.
• Time of product is limited in 83 days to deliver a completed prototype for production therefore survey population is small to save time and cost.
• This is a not high involvement product, it does not require big investment to develop and launch product.

From those factors, a smaller sample size will be taken in place in this case which is targeting to 20 responders.

• Choice of survey format

There are two groups of target segments primary and secondary. Primary segment is employed women with middle to high income and secondary market is student. Hence, development team has decided to use internet survey target to 10 responders in primary segment and face – to – face interaction format is target to 10 responders in secondary segment.

• Communicating the concept

To give interviewees a better understand of new product concept, product sketch will be showed to interviewees as well as a product storyboard has been created which illustrated how the new bags works and summarised all circumstances the new bag can be worn.

• Customer response measurement (appendix questionnaire…)

The survey also measure consumer response in term of their probability of purchasing. Potential consumers will be asked this question twice:

• Consumer will be given new product description and they will be asked whether they would buy this product. This question is to examine their opinion with the idea of versatile bag.
• Second question is asked after they have seen product storyboard.

The purpose is to compare consumer response on product ideas and product concept. If their answers are conflicted, so there may be some problems have been occurred during development process. For example, if consumer were happy with the description of new product and said they would purchase it, however, they had changed their mind after seeing the storyboard. In this case, we need to identify what reason leaded to this confliction.

• Interpretation of results ((appendix result…)

Ulrich (2013) stated that

• Q is quantity of product expected to be sold during within in this year

[pic 1]

• Fdefinitely is the fraction of survey respondents that would definitely purchase
• Fprobably is the fraction of survey respondents that would definitely purchase.
• Cdefinitely  and Cprobably are calibration constants usually established based on the experience of a company with similar products in the past. These value are commonly at 0.4 and 0.2.
• N is the number of customers in the target market for new sliding bag.
• A is fraction of potential customers for which product is available and they are aware of the product.
• P is the probability of a target market customer purchasing the new bag within this year. P value can be measured by formula as below:

[pic 2]

Assuming number of target consumers who are employed women with low - middle income in capital area in Australia 300,000. From the survey, the company is expecting that 20% of them will be aware of new product. The survey has given a definitely would buy fraction of 20% and a probably would buy fraction of 25%. Therefore, Value of P is at:

[pic 3]

[pic 4]

• Reflection on the result and process

The sales volume is a prediction and might be changed in reality that depends on many factors such as market size, availability of product and awareness as well as the fraction of customers who are likely to purchase. There is another formula to calculate the profit of new product which called ATAR model include awareness fraction of new product, trial rate, availability and repeat purchase rate.

• Sliding bag primary market is employed women and has low-high income. Target market size will be changed when employed rate change.
• Marketing activities upon launching events, product attractiveness itself lead to consumer awareness of new product. The higher number of consumers who are aware of new product the higher reputation and trial rate and therefore higher sales volume.
• Product availability is also contributed to the sales volume of new product. Product should be availability and distributed so that easy for target consumers to purchase. Once consumers are failed to search for products they are like to leave the brand and switch to another one.
• Consumers will repeat sales or introduce to product to their friends when they are satisfied with the products and services. Therefore, marketing activities are necessary to conduct in order to understand what consumer behaviours.

In short, number of sales and profit is changeable and affected by many elements. It varies in each year, each quarter or event each month period. In order to increase sales volume and profit, manager need to understand the change in the market.

Bill of materials

There are many styles of materials such as cotton, leather linen, silk and tapestry etc. The team has brainstormed with designers in order to finalise materials for new sliding bag.

• These materials bellow are considers for body of the bag.

Material for each component